Ecology Approves Changes for Hanford's Dangerous Waste Permit

The Washington State Department of Ecology has approved, with changes, two “Class 2” modifications for the permit that regulates the treatment, storage, and disposal of dangerous wastes at Hanford.

Class 2 changes are those that are significant enough to require the permittee to hold a public comment period and a public meeting. (The permittee is the U.S. Department of Energy.)

The first Class 2 permit modification is to groundwater monitoring plans and well management plans. The modification also addresses the groundwater monitoring plan for the Liquid Effluent Retention Facility and 200 Area Effluent Treatment Facility (LERF-ETF) chapter of the permit. The LERF-ETF stores and treats liquid waste from Hanford cleanup work.

Ecology and USDOE have agreed to extend the time period for a final decision on deleting Permit Attachment 10, “Purgewater Management Plan.”

The second Class 2 permit change is for the LERF-ETF chapter of the permit. The changes address the control room monitoring and liner performance monitoring equipment for LERF to respond to the decreased volume of waste the facilities treat and store.

Ecology’s decisions, including approval of these permit changes, can be appealed through the steps in Washington Administrative Code 173-303-845.